Dorothy Hoover

Dorothy Haines Hoover studied art under her father Frederick S. Haines, a skilled painter and engraver, and cousin of Group of Seven member Franklin Carmichael. In 1924 she received a B.A. in Modern History from the University of Toronto, and after graduating began working as a guide at the Royal Ontario Museum. In 1947, she gave lectures in the post-war programme of Museum Research Studies at the Ontario College of Arts, and in 1948 Ryerson Press published her book on artist J.W. Beatty. From 1952 to 1968 she doubled as lecturer and head librarian at the college, and was also editor of the alumni newsletter. In 1987 the library at OCAD was renamed The Dorothy. H. Hoover Library in honor of her years of service with the school. Although Hoover studied art with her father as a young woman it was only after her marriage to G.L.J. Hoover in the 1930s that she began to pursue her own practice more seriously. During her career she exhibited with the Ontario Society of Artists and the Royal Canadian Academy (1933-1937). Hoover is known for her floral still life paintings, landscapes and coastal scenes, rendered in watercolour and oil paint.